Module 8: Fantasy/Science Fiction

Module 8: Fantasy/Science Fiction

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

Summary: Sadie and Carter Kane may be siblings, but they live in two separate worlds.  Sadie has lived most of her life with her grandparents in London while Carter has spent his time traveling the world with his father who is an expert in Egyptian archaeology.  They spend time as a family on Christmas only, and this Christmas their father, Julius, takes the two children to The British Museum to “study” the Rosetta Stone.  Things don’t go according to plan and Julius ends up becoming trapped in the casket of Osiris.  The Kane siblings find out they are descended from the pharos, and with the help of their uncle Amos, a few gods, and a baboon, they embark on a journey to save both their father and the U.S. from being destroyed.

My Impressions: I really enjoyed this book - it was a fun, fast paced read that stayed interesting to the end.  I liked how the book would switch between Sadie and Carter telling the story, and each one would occasionally through in a comment or two.  The story is well written, and I like that it includes not only some mythology of Ancient Egypt, but also some basic hieroglyphs that the readers can learn.  I know it’s in a similar vein to the other Riordan series (Percy Jackson), but the students seem to really like them, and this series has now gotten me interested in reading his other books.

Review: Since their mother’s death, six years ago, 12-year-old Sadie Kane has lived in London with her maternal grandparents while her older brother, 14-year-old Carter, has traveled the world with their father, a renowned African American Egyptologist. In London on Christmas Eve for a rare evening together, Carter and Sadie accompany their dad to the British Museum, where he blows up the Rosetta Stone in summoning an Egyptian god. Unleashed, the vengeful god overpowers and entombs him, but Sadie and Carter escape. Initially determined to rescue their father, their mission expands to include understanding their hidden magical powers as the descendants of the pharaohs and taking on the ancient forces bent on destroying mankind. The first-person narrative shifts between Carter and Sadie, giving the novel an intriguing dual perspective made more complex by their biracial heritage and the tension between the siblings, who barely know each other at the story’s beginning. The first volume in the Kane Chronicles, this fantasy adventure delivers what fans loved about the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series: young protagonists with previously unsuspected magical powers, a riveting story marked by headlong adventure, a complex background rooted in ancient mythology, and wry, witty twenty-first-century narration. The last pages contain a clever twist that will leave readers secretly longing to open their lockers at the start of school. — Carolyn Phelan  

 Library Uses: I think it would be fun to book talk this book and use it to lead into other books about ancient Egypt.  Students could learn about the hieroglyphs used in the book and then try creating their own glyphs.

References:

Phelan, C. (2010). [Book review of The Red Pyramid by R. Riordan]. Retrieved from www.booklistonline.com

Riordan, R. (2010). The red pyramid. New York, NY: Hyperion Books